Lost in the Sands of Time Redone
by byaku
Summary: Herm...I'm horrible at these. See my original one. Though the summary sucks. cries SakuGaara.


**Lost in the Sands of Time (LITSOT)**

By: Tetsuko-dono 

**Rating: PG-13, maybe higher, I dunno**

**Pairings: GaaraxSakura, minor NaruxHinata**

Chapter 1: Kinda cute 

Sakura sighed. Her parents had beckoned her home because they felt she was being overworked. Since they were in her home village, Sasuke and Naruto were with Kakashi, while Sakura grudgingly returned home. Even though she had passed the Jônin exams and was only briefly at equal standing with Kakashi, her forming training master who was still assisting the 19-year-old, who had became an ANBU.

Sakura had changed a lot since the exams. Her figure had filled out as she had grown up, but she had grown her hair back out since the first Chûnin exam. People liked it short, but she kept it long as a promise to Ino. She was as tall and slim as ever, measuring about 5'8" in height. Ino had grown as well, but she was pretty much the exact same size as Sakura.

Sighing again to herself, her cloudy green eyes shut in exasperation, Sakura wondered why her mom had called her home. True, they said that she was being overworked, but that wasn't true. Even though they had advanced, the three of them stayed as a team. Naruto was well on his way to becoming the next Hokage; he was more responsible now and was getting close to topping Sasuke on several things.

_Sasuke…_ Sakura smiled as she thought back on her younger days when she had had a crush on the older boy. He used to make her heart race and her knees go shaky, but now all she thought of him as was as a friend. He was still a mentor to Sakura, as he was superior to both of them in the physical arts. Naruto, on the other hand, was still a troublemaker. He loved a good joke and would often play one on the two of them just for the fun of it.

She had seen Sasuke and Naruto off at the entrance to their village, along with Kakashi. _I wonder why Iruka-sensei came to greet us,_ she wondered to herself. The appearance of the training master was quite puzzling; Naruto had been thrilled. _I bet Iruka took Naruto to get ramen_, she thought with a soft smile. Sakura took a bright strand of her pink hair and wrapped it around a delicate digit as she smiled at the memories. The sun was at that low point near the end of the day where it set her hair off just right and made it a beautiful, pearly pink.

She was so lost in her memories that she didn't even realize that she had walked past her own house. Stopping and looking at the houses around her, she realized that she had walked past and felt rather ashamed. Turning around, she ran back to her house and quickly walked inside. "I'm home, mother," she said, making sure her shuriken stars and kunai knives were still in their respective pouches for no reason other then the security of carrying them. Sasuke and Naruto had left Ino alone. Ino was now a Chûnin training for the Jônin exams, but Sakura helped her whenever she found the time.

"Oh, I'm so glad you're home!" Sakura's mom gushed. Sakura eyed her mother with a curious look. She had somehow inherited totally different looks from the rest of her family; she was the only one with either pink hair or green eyes. That had never bothered her, but now she thought it quite interesting.

"And why would that be?" Sakura asked, afraid to find out what her mother meant by that. Her eyebrows were raised and her green eyes suspicious as she put her hands on her hips. She was still wearing something similar to the red-and-white dress she wore years ago. Also, under the dress was the shorter, incredibly tight shorts that she wore underneath it. She fingered the fabric briefly, smiling as she remembered how self-conscious she used to be, all those years ago.

"Well…" Sakura's mother trailed off, casting shifty glances back towards the main room. "Well, uh, er, I have someone, uh, I want you to, uh…meet," she added.

"And who would that be and why?" Sakura asked, becoming even more suspicious by what her mother was saying. _Please please PLEASE don't be what I think it is…_ she thought desperately. _I bet my mom's got me a fiancé…I'm doomed, _Sakura added in her mind.

"Well…come with me," her mom said, for lack of better words as she led Sakura into the main room. Sitting on a stool was Gaara no Sabaku, the super-elite Jônin from Suna.

Sakura's mouth dropped open about two feet. Stuttering, she stared at him and pointed. "Wh…what is he doing here?" she gasped, getting almost hysterical. Gaara regarded her with emotionless eyes, his hair fluttering slightly and briefly covering his Chinese tattoo that ironically read, "love". He was wearing the same clothes that she had seen him wear all those years ago…the dark colours mixed in with the white sash.

He still wore the same large gourd on his back that he had worn all those years ago at the Chuunin exams. Still in shock, she stared at him, her cloudy eyes wide with surprise. Sakura's mom looked taken aback at Sakura's reaction and cleared her throat in the awkward silence.

"This is your fiancé, Gaara no Sabaku. He comes from Suna. Um…Sakura, do you know him?" her mom asked innocently, slightly concerned for her daughter's mental health. In reply, Sakura put her hand to her brow and promptly fainted.

When she woke up, she was laying on a bed in a different room. Sitting up slowly, she rubbed the sleep out of her eyes. "Are you all right?" Gaara asked quietly. Sakura jumped slightly; she had noticed him sitting on a chair by her bed. Looking around, she realized that it was her old room, just with a larger bed.

"I'm…" Sakura tried to say; the word she managed came out like a croak. Her hand flew to her throat as she realized her tongue was just too dry to get the words out.

"I'll go get you some water," he said, standing up and walking out of the room. Sakura stared at her room; it was the same as she had left it, except for the larger bed. _I bet mum expects us to both sleep here,_ Sakura thought, slightly disturbed by the thought. All the interaction she'd ever had with Gaara hadn't always been the best.

Gaara soon slipped back inside the room with a small jug of water and a porcelain glass. Filling the glass up with water, he handed it to her. "Here you go. Don't drink too fast or it will make you sick," he said. Like normal, his voice was deep and rich, though she noticed that it had lost its evil overtone that had always disgusted her. Now she simply took pleasure in listening to the deepness of his voice.

Sakura nodded, letting him know that she heard him. Taking the glass, she raised it to her lips and drank a little bit of it, letting the coolness fill her mouth before swallowing. She frowned slightly; it felt weird with a cool drink going down such a parched throat, but after a few drinks it felt much better. Finishing the glass, she held it out to Gaara.

"Are you done or do you want more?" he asked. His dark eyes were intently staring at Sakura, who shifted uneasily under his gaze until he smiled very softly and slightly; it was barely a smile.

"More," she said quietly. Her voice had a little bit of harshness in it, but other then that it sounded very good. It wasn't as feminine as it normally was, but Sakura figured once she got a bit more water in her she'd be fine. Gaara took the glass and filled it up again. She took it and started to gulp but he stopped her by putting a hand on her shoulder.

"Don't drink it too fast unless you want to get sick," he warned her for the second time over the same thing. Sakura nodded, slowly starting to finish the rest of the drink. She cleared her throat, making sure that she had finished the drink. A smile came over her face as she realized that her voice was probably back to normal.

"I'm done now," she murmured, handing the glass back to Gaara. Sakura smiled; her voice had come back to its normal, lovely girly self. "I sound normal!" she said happily. True, she was 19, but even she was prone to random acts of immature behaviour every now and then!

"That's good," Gaara said. Standing up, he took both the jug and the glass back out the door. Sakura tilted her head as she watched him; he walked the same as he always had. She giggled girlishly; she was just being foolish. Snuggling back underneath the covers, she waited for him to get back. Little did she realize that she had fallen asleep.

About fifteen minutes later she woke up, feeling slightly better about taking a cat-nap. She peered over at where Gaara was sitting. "I fell asleep, didn't I?" she asked, her tone meek as she realized her mistake.

"Yes, you did," he said. Sakura stared; he sounded slightly amused at her embarrassment. "It's okay. You must be tired from training."

"It's hard, but it's fun. I hope to take my ANBU test soon," Sakura told him shyly. That was one thing she had never confided to anyone; she hoped to be an ANBU that was close to the Hokage and to be one of Tsunade-sama elite bodyguards despite the fact she was a pure medic-nin who had inherited most of Tsunade's incredible strength.

"So you are a Jônin?" he asked. Sakura nodded shyly. "So am I. Do you know any of the requirements for the ANBU exams?" Gaara asked.

"You're a Jônin!" Sakura asked, astonished.

"Yes. Why; did you think I was higher?" Gaara asked, a little embarrassed at this prospect.

"I thought you would have been the Kazekage by now!" she told him. At this, Gaara looked quite taken aback.

"Wh…why?" Gaara asked, astonished in return. His dark eyes were wide with a form of astonishment at her remark. He formed a small, twisted smile in his head. _I _am _the kazekage, you silly little girl. But, I no longer have Shukaku…so life balances out,_ he told himself, considering all of this in his head.

"Because of what you did in the Chûnin exams! You, and Temari, and, and, and…" Sakura said, starting to hyperventilate at the thought.

"Kankurou. Okay, just calm down!" Gaara said, starting to plead with the over-reacting girl. He reached out a hand and awkwardly patted her arm. "Just calm down. Please?" Gaara asked her. He smiled again in his head. _How is she going to react when she finds out I'm really the kazekage? That will definitely be interesting,_ he thought.

"How are they, anyway?" Sakura asked as an afterthought, calming down from her wild memories. She fixed her cloudy jade eyes on the boy.

"Temari's okay. She's married and happy. They're expecting their first shinobi child in a few weeks. With those parents, it's definitely going to be a high-class ninja," he said with an easy-going smile. "Kankuro's married as well. They have two children, a girl and a boy, who are both going for Genin status. They've been happy together, and I think his wife got pregnant not too long ago," he said with a smile.

Sakura smiled in return; he seemed much happier when he was talking about the siblings that were out of his life forever. "Yeah. I'm an only child. I think of it as a blessing, compared to what Sasuke has to deal with with Itachi-san," she said quietly.

"It sounds fun. Of course, Sasuke has a few more advantages because Itachi's now 26 and married to Kurenai," Gaara said sarcastically.

"Sakura? Are you awake? You have some friends waiting at the door! Make it quick; it's almost time for bed!" Sakura's mother poked her head in the door and looked at the two. Sakura was lost briefly in thought and jumped, startled by her mother's voice.

"Oh, okay mom. Gaara and I will be right out, okay?" she assured her mother, moving the covers and standing up. Slightly dizzy, she stumbled but Gaara put her arm over his shoulder and supported her.

"She hasn't moved lately," he informed her mother quietly. "She'll be fine."

"Oh…okay. I guess I'll leave that to you," her startled mother said, backing out of the room to make way for the two. Gaara helped Sakura to the door. Soon, she was strong enough to support herself.

"Thanks, Gaara," she said with a smile. Getting only a nod in return, she strode out the door. She didn't notice the way that Gaara shadowed her was both protective and possessive, and that he was ready to kill anything and anyone that tried to harm her.

"Hey, Sakura-chan!" Sasuke said, giving her a brief hug. He was half a head taller then Sakura, but he reached out and gave her an arm-hug before noticing the tall boy who shadowed her. "Sabaku no Gaara, what are you doing here?" he asked, puzzled.

"Yeah, why are you here?" Naruto asked, suspicious. Now 19, Naruto had grown up quite a bit but he was still prone to long, boring immature breakouts.

"He…he's my…" Sakura stumbled over the words, unsure of exactly how to phrase the important concept.

"I'm her fiancé," Gaara said bluntly, standing in front of her so that he could supposedly protect her from whatever came her way. Eying him with amusement flickering in her eyes, she came up next to him.

"Yup," Sakura said amusedly. "Kakashi-sensei, what are you doing here?" she asked her old training master.

"The ANBU exams are coming up, and I was sent to get you ready for them. You, Sasuke, and Naruto," Kakashi replied. He had his traditional mask on and was as tall as ever.

"Will Gaara come train with us?" Sakura asked. She figured that her mother would insist; now that they were engaged they were due to get married and to have shinobi babies. Flinching at the thought, she shuddered briefly before turning her attention back to the conversation.

"Yes. Sakura, I have already talked to your mother. Gaara, you can be polite and inform her when you two retire," Kakashi replied. None of them could tell whether or not he was smiling under the mask because he appeared to keep a straight face.

"Yes, sir," Gaara said respectfully. He was still glaring at Sasuke until Sasuke made a barely perceptible nod towards Naruto and Gaara relaxed…slightly.

"When are you guys getting married?" Sasuke asked. He was happy for the couple, as Gaara seemed to like Sakura, even if he showed it in an…unusual way.

"In two weeks, up on a dune in my village," Gaara replied. He stared offhandedly at the others, still glaring distrustfully at them as if he didn't trust them with his precious Sakura. Kakashi was staring at him oddly, and Gaara stared right back until Kakashi smiled slightly with his eyes and shrugged.

"This information's new to me, too," Sakura chuckled nervously.

"Sakura, dear! It's late! Time for bed!" her mother called from inside. Rolling her eyes, Sakura groaned.

"I'm sorry, you guys. I'll meet you in the morning at the tree, okay? Gaara'll be with me, so nothing will happen," she said regretfully towards the people she was talking to.

"Okay. Good night, Sakura," Sasuke said, turning and walking away. Naruto nodded his good-bye and went in the opposite direction from Sasuke. He had his own wife at home…a rather crazy one that no one knew existed. Kakashi stayed a few minutes after, watching Gaara with a strangely curious look on his masked face.

"Hm. I shall see you in the morning, Sakura, Gaara," he said. With that final sentence he turned and jauntily walked away with not a care in the world. Sakura watched him go, admiring how he could act like nothing was happening when a bunch was happening right under his nose.

"Come on, Sakura dear! You, too, Gaara!" her mother called again.

"I'm coming, mother!" Sakura yelled back, exasperated. "C'mon, Gaara," she said, tugging him by his sleeve. The two walked into the living room together, Gaara shadowing Sakura intently.

"You guys are sharing Sakura's room," her mother said, a happy smile on her face.

"We know, mother," Sakura groaned, brushing some strands of light pink hair out of her face. "I figured that much out when I saw the double bed," she muttered to herself.

"Well, get a good night's sleep and don't practice too hard in the morning!" Sakura's mom said. With that final comment, she turned around and went into her own room. Since her mom's husband had died, Sakura had had to work hard to support her mother. It was easy now that she was a Jônin, and she made more money because she could do harder tasks.

The living room took on a darker outcast as she stared at Gaara. "Let's go," she said quietly, dreading the outcome of what would happen that night.

"Okay," Gaara said quietly, following her. They walked quickly to her room. It was as quaint as she remembered, she thought, thinking back. It had the same oaken dresser at the foot of her bed that held all of her clothes, the same small mirror above her bed, the same large window that was covered often by curtains, and all of the other things that made it homey for her. The bed, even though it was larger, was covered by the same kind of bed sheets that her old one had had.

"Um…I'm going to change into my pajamas, now," Sakura said nervously, picking her pajamas out of the oaken dresser and walking into the adjoining bathroom. When she came out Gaara had changed into a white cotton robe, and was sitting on the left side of the bed. His hair was arranged so that the Chinese tattoo could be clearly seen.

Gaara turned and looked at her as she exited the bathroom. She could have sworn a look of surprise crossed his face for a quarter of a second, but it quickly disappeared. Walking over to her oaken dresser, she pulled out a light blue hair band and quickly bound her pale pink hair back in a quick, messy ponytail.

"Anything else…" Sakura asked herself out loud, mentally ticking off what she had done on her fingers. "Nope, okay!" she smiled happily and jumped on the bed before realizing that Gaara had to sleep there too. "Umm…you take the left side, I'll take the right, I guess," she mumbled shyly. Sakura had never slept in the same bed as a boy before, and especially Gaara, who was supposedly her mortal enemy, and who had tried to kill her teammates all that time ago! She was so used to sleeping in the center. _I hope I don't roll over on to him in the middle of the night, _Sakura thought. A slight blush crossed her face as she thought of such a thing happening.

"Okay," Gaara said, lying down on the bed after getting in the covers. The two turned in so they were lying on the sides that were facing each other, because they needed to talk.

"Kakashi mentioned something about filling me in on the details?" Sakura asked him quietly.

"Yes. We will be married in two weeks' time, up by my village, on the dune called Saromi. Then, we will come back here to Konoha and train for the ANBU exams. After them, no matter whether we make ANBU or not, you will move back to Suna, and you will share my rooms. Then, we will live together for the rest of our lives," Gaara said, going through the entire speech rather emotionlessly.

Sakura grimaced at him; the way he said it didn't sound too exciting. "Are we going to be stuck with our own teams?" she asked, starting to drift off slightly due to the day's exertions.

"Yes. Before we start training for the ANBU exams, we will be given our own teams and train them while Kakashi-san trains us for the ANBU," Gaara told her. His eyes were tentative, and he turned away from her to go to sleep. It was too early for him to get involved with her. Besides, there was a chance that the wedding would be called off. Who knows how it got arranged in the first place! Gaara had a sneaking suspicion that his sister and brother had something to do it with it, but they were unconfirmed.

"Oh…okay…" Sakura said drowsily, her jaded eyes closing. Gaara's, too, were closed, as she said her final words—"You know, you're kinda cute."

End of Chapter 1

Notes: Yup, Gaara is a little OOC…oh well. Cute, ne? I know he would never do something like that in the series, but hey…it's a fanfic. I can do whatever I want in a fanfic. Anyway, please read and review!

Tetsuko-san


End file.
